MuonionalustaMeteorites.Com the biggest website about meteorites from Muonionalusta, Sweden!
The number one site about Muonionalusta meteorites!
Muonionalusta is located north of the artic circle in the northern part of Sweden and the first meteorite was found in 1906.
The meteorite that is an iron has been classified as a fine octahedrite classe IVA and is considered to have a spectacular etch pattern. You can read more about the meteorites minerals, chemistry and structure under the "Chemistry and structure" tab.
We that run this page are Thomas Österberg and Daniel Svensson. We have been collecting minerals for many years both in Sweden and abroad, but the last years we have mainly been searching for meteorites in the Muonionalusta area.
When we started this project (and even today) there were very few pictures on the internet and quite little information about meteorite hunting in the Muonionalusta area. Some etched slides on ebay were present but not much more.
This is an attempt to change that, atleast a little.
Please enjoy the pictures!
We have meteorites for sale and trade!
Please contact us using email: daniel_svensson@hotmail.com
Svenska meteoriter till salu och för byte, kontakta oss!
Kittkyjärvii Muonionalusta Norrbotten Modoslompolo
The number one site about Muonionalusta meteorites!
Muonionalusta is located north of the artic circle in the northern part of Sweden and the first meteorite was found in 1906.
The meteorite that is an iron has been classified as a fine octahedrite classe IVA and is considered to have a spectacular etch pattern. You can read more about the meteorites minerals, chemistry and structure under the "Chemistry and structure" tab.
We that run this page are Thomas Österberg and Daniel Svensson. We have been collecting minerals for many years both in Sweden and abroad, but the last years we have mainly been searching for meteorites in the Muonionalusta area.
When we started this project (and even today) there were very few pictures on the internet and quite little information about meteorite hunting in the Muonionalusta area. Some etched slides on ebay were present but not much more.
This is an attempt to change that, atleast a little.
Please enjoy the pictures!
Please notice that in Sweden you must apply for a license for using a metal detector!
You must also have the permission from the land owner if you wish to collect meteorites.
If you wish to go hunting, please be a responsible collector and don´t destroy or leave any traces after you!
The story of discovery of the Muonionalusta meteorite - some quoting from Wickmann (1997)
" In 1906 two children were tending cattle near the village of Kitkiöjärvi in northermost Sweden.
While kicking at stones lying on the ground, one child suddenly struck an exceptionally heavy and rusty object, which they took home to the village.
It was later identified as an iron meteorite and was described by Högbom (1910) under the name Muonionalusta. It was studied much later by Malmqvist (1948). "
In the picture: the discoverer of Muonionalusta meteorite, Viktor Mattila, at the place of discovery, photo taken 1956 (almost 50 years after the discovery). (Picture from Wickman 1964)
See fullsize picture of Viktor Mattila and his sister Amalia Mattila
"In 1946, a second meteorite was found, in Kitkiöjoki, where the foundations of a house were being excavated. From these two iron meteorites and the paucity of the population, Wickman concluded that a meteorite crater must exist in the area, and visited the general area in 1956, hoping to locate the crater. Regrettably, his hopes were in vain but he did discover that there was an oral tradition in Kitkiöjärvi regarding another iron meteorites as a result of the first recovered meteorite in 1906. According to the man who told the story to hid children, he had found it in the village probably in the 1870s, though it was later discarded.
Subsequently Wickman (1956) wrote a pamphlet, which was printed and distributed to every household in the area to make known the possibility of finding meteorites. Eventually, in 1963, a third iron meteorite was discovered, this time during the building of a logging track not very far from Kitkiöjoki. All the meteorites so far found are described by Wickman (1963, 1964) and by Buchwald (1975).
Chang & Wänke (1969) established the terrestrial age (> 800.000 years) of one of the meteorites and some of its consequences are discussed by Wickman (1970). As Sweden, and especially its northern parts, has been repeatedly glaciated during the last one million years it became evident that the meteorites must have undergone a complex glacial transport history before their discovery. For this reason Wickman encouraged Lagerbäck, who has experience of the glacial geology of the region, to take an interest in the meteorites and their terrestrial history.
Inspired by the prospect of discovering an impact crater, potentially containing a Quarternary stratigraphy dating back several hundreds of thousands of years, Lagerbäck visited the area in 1989. Aerial photographs covering the area were studied and the geological conditions at the find sites, the regolith stratigraphy included, were examined. However, no obvius crater could be identified, though an interesting piece of information was obtained from people occupied with road work between Kitkiöjoki and Kitkiöjärvi. They told how the previous year a stone crusher, working in a lonely area NW of Muodoslompolo, became jammed by a piece of "soft iron". Eventually this trail revealed that two pieces of this "iron" had been encountered and fortunately one had been secured before it could pass through the crusher."
The Muonionalusta iron meteteorite - chemistry and structure
Fine (0.3 mm) Octahedrite classe IVA
Chemical analysis, 8.42% Ni, 2.24 ppm Ga, 0.133 ppm Ge, 1.6 ppm Ir, R. Schaudy et al. (1972).
Something interesting is that the crystal shape (and Widmanstätten figures) seams to be more like tetrahedrons than octahedrons. This has been noticed early by D. Malmqvist (1948).
This could possibly be explained by a shock event, compressing the octahedron to a tetrahedron. Look at the angles at the crystals in this "core specimen". (50x30x15 mm. collection of D. Svensson)
Another "core fragment" showing the angles of a tetrahedron (size 22x17x20 mm).
Something else that indicates some shock event is displacement lines:
Displacement line going through meteorite due to shock event? Click on image for larger hi resolution image. Specimen from D. Svensson collection.
Also the presence of the mineral Stishovite, a high pressure SiO2 (see mineral Table below) is a sign of a possible shock event.
Before the ething procedure the meteorite looks as pure and shiny steel metal, its first after the etchant (nitric acic HNO3, ferric chloride FeCl3 etc) has partly dissolved the polished surface (different minerals dissolve in different amount) that the Widmanstatten pattern occur.
A small mirror polished specimen that has not been etched
Specimen after the etching. Small specimens are more likely to rust to some extension and as you can see on this picture small amounts of rust has occured in small cracks maybee one month after the etching procedure was done, luckily it seems that it has stopped.
Etched meteorite slides look differently depending on the amount of grinding and polishing, the amount and kind of etchant and various different things, this specimen has been prepared in a way making it specially shiny and clear. Specimen measures 40x35 mm. Specimen from D. Svensson collection.
Identified minerals:
Very nice troilite inclusion, together with the Troilite other rare minerals sometimes occur. Specimen from collection of T.Österberg.
Mineral Chemistry Description (1) Reference
Akaganéite ß-Fe(O,OH,Cl) Brown. D. Holtstam and J. Söderhielm : "The Muonionalusta iron meteorite from Lapland, Sweden : New finds and findings", 5th International Conference "Mineralogy & Museums", Paris, Sept. 5-8th 2004, Bull. de Liaison de la Soc. Franç. de Minéralogie et Cristallographie, 2004, Vol 16, N°2.
Daubreélite FeCr2S4 Metallic, black, greenish-grey.
Gersdorffite NiAsS Metallic, gray, grayish black.
Goethite alfa-Fe O(OH) Brown.
Iron Fe Iron-black D. Holtstam and J. Söderhielm : "The Muonionalusta iron meteorite from Lapland, Sweden : New finds and findings", 5th International Conference "Mineralogy & Museums", Paris, Sept. 5-8th 2004, Bull. de Liaison de la Soc. Franç. de Minéralogie et Cristallographie, 2004, Vol 16, N°2.
Kamacite (Fe,Ni) Metallic grey
Lepidocrocite gamma-FeO(OH) Sub-metallic, red, reddish-brown
Magnetite Fe3O4 Metallic greyish black
Stishovite SiO2 D. Holtstam and J. Söderhielm : "The Muonionalusta iron meteorite from Lapland, Sweden : New finds and findings", 5th International Conference "Mineralogy & Museums", Paris, Sept. 5-8th 2004, Bull. de Liaison de la Soc. Franç. de Minéralogie et Cristallographie, 2004, Vol 16, N°2.
Taenite (Fe,Ni) Greyish white
Troilite FeS
Gallery of Muonionalusta individuals
This page contains photos of some Muonionalusta individuals, recently collected in the strewn field.
We hope that this gallery will give you an impression of different shapes and surface structures.
Our intension with MuonionalustaMeteorites.Com is not to sell meteorites, but spread knowledge about this interesting meteorite and pictures from our field trips.
However, meteorite collecting is an expensive hobby, and in order to cover the big expensives with traveling, making slices, buying other meteorites, paying for webhotel etc we are open for inquiries regarding trade or purchase. The pictures below show some individuals available for trade or purchase.
In case of interest, please contact us and make an offer!